Bad moon rising
by vault dweller 12
Summary: A young women finds herself to be lost in Gothams swamp. What happens when she encounters the legend behind the swamp? Solomon Grundy learns the true meaning of friendship and the cost of it.
1. Chapter 1

Bad moon rising

She was definitely lost, there was no doubt about it. She probably took a wrong turn at the crossroads. It was starting to get dark and the full moon was rising. A small beam of moonlight shined through the trees. The path was overgrown with bushes and thorns. She kept on following the path, hoping it would lead out of the forest. She should have known better than going out for a midnight walk in the forest.

But on the other hand, she had to get away from her troubles at home. She left her husband a few months ago, he was a violent, alcoholic no good and she feared for the safety of herself and her daughter Nina. They currently stayed in a cheap apartment where people tended to keep to themselves. Maybe if Rose got enough money together, they could move to a finer apartment, but for the moment, they had to stay where they were. A distinct sound in the bushes next to her brought her back to reality.

Two eyes stared at her from the bushes. There was no telling whether the owner of those eyes was friendly or hostile. Suddenly a giant black boar jumped out of the bushes. Its tusks alone were the size of half her arm. She weighted her options and decided that running would be the best thing to do. She slowly turned around without making any sudden movements and without looking back, she started running. The tree branches were hitting her and she had small cuts on her face and arms but she ignored them. She looked ahead and saw there was a descending hill. There was no time to slow down, she took her chances and rolled down the hill. The boar that saw that its prey was lost to him, decided to give up the hunt.

Rose fell into some sort of pool. She was swimming, heading for shore when she suddenly felt something grabbing her leg. In an instant, she was underwater. The water was dark and there was no visibility. She kicked around hoping to hit her attacker. She felt her foot hitting something and the grip around her leg loosened. She saw her chance and swam as fast as she could to shore. She was still regaining her breath when she heard something behind her. She turned around to face her attacker. The moonlight shined down on his face. Rose wanted to scream but she was cut off by a firm hand being placed over her mouth. She looked in his eyes, those dead eyes. It was the last thing she saw, before she blacked out.


	2. Chapter 2

Bad moon rising: chapter 2

When Rose woke up, she noticed she was still on the shore of the swamp.

There was a small fire burning on the shore, on the other side of the fire, sat her attacker.

Rose wanted to scream again, but she managed to control herself. "What do you want from me?" Her voice shouted.

Her attacker said nothing, but stood up and started walking towards her.

He stopped in front of her.

She looked at him and saw things she hadn't noticed the first time. His scarred body, his shattered clothes, the pale/grey skin.

'What was this thing?' Rose asked herself. 'Was it even human?'

As if Rose asked the question out loud, the creature groaned. It sounded like words, but Rose couldn't make anything of it.

"Do you have a name? My name is Rose, what's yours?"

The creature or man, if you could call it that, groaned again and Rose could swear she heard a name: Solomon. "Your name is Solomon?"

He nodded.

They sat quietly across each other, after what seemed hours Rose finally found the courage to speak again.

"How did you end up in this dreadful place, Solomon?" He shot her a look, one that gave Rose the shivers, but he started talking or groaning in this case.

She understood some words such as; Cyrus Gold, mob, deal gone wrong, curse. She listened to his story, while experiencing various emotions, but the feeling she felt the most were feelings of sympathy and compassion.

"So you were once a man called Cyrus Gold, a mobster. But one day a deal went wrong and your partners in crime double crossed you?"

"They decided to ditch your body in Gotham's swamp. And cursed you for your betrayal. But the curse and the mystical powers of the swamp itself didn't match well and thus you were born?" Solomon nodded. "How long have you been buried alive in that swamp?"

Solomon groaned something. "150 years?!" "You've been buried in that swamp for a 150 years?!" Solomon nodded twice.

"So what will you do now'? The people who cursed you are long dead and Gotham has changed a lot since the 1850's. Solomon groaned.

"You want me to show you around town a bit?" "I don't know, I think people might get a bit suspicious if I walk around town with a 7 foot swamp zombie." Rose said sarcastically.

She thought about Solomon's request, Rose felt sorry for all the agony Solomon had gone through and everyone deserved a second chance.

So after giving Solomon's request a thought for some time, she made her decision.

"Alright, I'll do it, but first we should get you to a tailor. You're in desperate need of a new suit!"


	3. Chapter 3

Bad moon rising: chapter 3

Rose walked as silently as possible through Gotham's alley's. this wasn't the safest neighborhood in Gotham but with Solomon by her side she felt safer then ever. They avoided the street lights s much as possible and hided in an alley every time a police car patrouilled the street. They finally reached the tailor after two hours of constant hiding. 'Just let me do the talking okay?' Solomon nodded. The door bell ringed as a sign that new customers had entered the shop. The tailor, an elderly man with a measuring tape around his neck. He looked curiously at the two customers through his thick reading glasses. Welcome miss and eh… sir said the tailor with a bit of hesitation in his voice. Rose noticed the hesitation in the man's voice and replied quickly: I'm looking for a new suit for my friend here. 'he's a foreign exchange student from Europe'. As if that would explain everything. 'Nice to meet you miss and mister …'? Miss Noble and this is mister Grundy. 'I see, shall we take a look at some suits'? 'Please follow me'. The tailor who had identified himself as Mr. Thompson leaded them to a group of suits. 'Hmm I'll have to take mister Grundy's height and width. 'I have some errands to run, you think you'll manage Solomon'? Solomon groaned something so loud that it made MR. Thompson jump up and accidently pin Solomon with a needle. Rose managed not to laugh at this scenery and walked outside while Solomon groaned again. She bought some groceries in a nearby supermarket. While walking back to the tailor Rose was busy sending a text to her sister with the request if she could bring Nina to Rose's her apartment. She was paying so much attention to her phone that she accidently bumped into an officer. The groceries flew through the sky in slow motion to land scattered over the side walk. 'I am so sorry officer I didn't see you there'. 'No problem miss and it's sergeant he said while getting her back on her feet'. They picked up the scattered groceries. 'Thank you so much sergeant, I should be going now'. 'Goodbye sergeant'. 'Goodbye miss he said, while tipping his hat'. What a fascinating women thought sergeant O'Shaughnessy while walking back to the precinct.

Rose looked on her watch, it was already ten past two. She left Solomon in the store about three hours ago, hopefully nothing happened. She walked into the store not knowing where to look first there were pieces of clothing scattered over the entire place. 'Hello'? No response. 'Hello anybody here'? A tired looking mister Thompson came out of one of the backrooms. 'I've done everything I can and this is the result'. Solomon came out of the dressing room. Rose took a moment to take a good look at Solomon and his new outfit. He was completely dresses in a black suit with black leather shoes size 50. To top it off he wore a black fedora. Solomon groaned. 'Of course you look good, this a great improvement to those shattered clothes'. 'Why don't you take a look for yourself'. Solomon turned towards the mirror. He looked at his reflection and for the first time Rose saw a glimpse of a smile on his face. 'So how much for the suit'? Well, it's a handmade suit so I'd guess about 750* but for you I'll make it 600$. This was a big cut of her already small monthly budget but it was a small price for Solomon's friendship. She reached for her wallet but there was something out of place. She took the wallet out of her purse but it wasn't hers, it was the sergeant's. they must have dropped their wallets when they bumped into each other. Rose would bring the sergeant's wallet back tomorrow. 'Do you accept credit card'? ten minutes later they walked outside the store, Solomon fully dressed in his new suit. 'We're going home Solomon'. They arrived at Rose apartment after a twenty minutes walk. 'Could you wait a minute outside please'? Solomon nodded. When rose opened the door to her apartment she was immediately greeted by Nina who rushed into her mother's arms. Honey we're having a visitor for the next few days, are you okay with that O f course mommy as long as I don't have to give up my room'. Of course not, we will find a place for our new guest. Our guest is a bit 'different' but I'm sure you'll come to like him'. 'Solomon would you like to come in'? Solomon squeezed himself through the tight door opening. Nina looked at him with eyes the sizes of dishes. 'Nina, no staring that's rude'. Solomon looked down at her and gave her a warm smile. Nina gave him a hug. It seemed things would go well between those two.


	4. Chapter 4

Bad moon rising: chapter 4

The Wrong Clue

Solomon couldn't sleep at all.

The city's sounds kept him awake.

He looked at the clock next to the sofa.

The numbers on the clock indicated that it was already 2.00 a.m.

He was finally slumbering off, when he heard a distinctive cry outside.

It sounded like someone was in danger. It sounded like Rose.

There was no time to waste. Solomon opened the window and slided down the fire escape.

The street was dark since most of the light poles were smashed by hooligans.

A couple of yards further laid a figure in the light of one of the few intact light poles.

Solomon ran towards the figure.

It was a young woman who lay in a black pool, which was probably her own blood.

She had several stab wounds. Some were shallow and others were deep.

She had bruises all over her face, and one of her eyes was shut.

Solomon looked around for unwanted attention, but the street was deserted.

He carefully picked up the unconscious girl, and started walking back to the apartment.

Rose woke up by a soft knock on the door.

She slowly walked to the door, noticing that the couch where Solomon slept was empty.

She picked up a baseball bat she kept near the door in case it was her abusive ex-husband.

Slowly she turned the door knob around and opened the door a bit.

She expected to see her ex-husband's face, but instead she saw Solomon's.

Quickly, she opened the door and let him in.

'What happened? Where were you?' Rose asked worried.

Solomon quickly explained the situation. He explained how he heard a woman scream and thought it was Rose.

He explained how he found the woman unconscious in a splash of her own blood.

'We should go to a hospital, we can't leave her like this.'

Solomon agreed.

A shock of recognition went through Rose when she recognized the girl's face.

It was her sister Daisy.

They spoke yesterday on the phone. Nothing indicated that Daisy was in trouble. And now this happened.

There was no time to waste. They would find out what happened later.

'I parked my car in front of the building. If you carry her to the car, I'll quickly get Nina. I can't risk letting her alone after what happened.'

Five minutes later, they were on route to the hospital. Nina and the unconscious Daisy were sitting in the backseat, and Rose and Solomon in the front seat.

'How is she, Nina?'

'Aunt Daisy is still unconscious, but her wound started bleeding again.'

'Take one of the towels on the back seat and keep pressure on the wound.'

The hospital came in sight and they parked in front of the emergency entrance.

Two doctors were smoking a cigarette. They had to jump away or they would have been hit by the approaching car.

They were just about to give the driver a piece of their mind, when they noticed the unconscious woman on the back seat.

One of them paged a medical team while the other doctor gently lifted Daisy out of the backseat.

The medical team had arrived with a stretcher.

They placed her on it and rushed to the operation quarters.

Rose, Nina and Solomon followed one of the doctors to the waiting room.

'Will aunt Daisy be okay?' Nina asked with tears in her eyes.

'I'm sure she'll be fine.' Rose soothed.

Nina had fallen asleep on her mother's lap after three hours waiting. She didn't notice the doctor who brought news about Daisy's condition.

'She's stabilized for now, but she can't see anyone at the moment.'

'What can you tell me about her wounds?'

'She looks like she's been attacked by someone.' The doctor answered with a dark glare at Solomon.

'I'm afraid a ghost from my past has come back to haunt me.' Rose said mysteriously.

'Could you please keep me posted about her condition?' Rose asked.

Rose gave the doctor a card with her number on it.

'I can't stay here, he might find me.' She said.

With Nina sleeping in her arms, she left followed by Solomon.

'So, she was brought her with a young Caucasian woman about 30 years old with a kid about 9 years. And a strange looking fellow?' The officer asked the doctor.

'Yes officer. They came in about two hours ago.' The doctor said.

'Alright. Thanks for the information. We will need to watch the security tapes as well.'

'What do we have Jim?' The other officer named Kevin asked.

'I'm not sure sergeant, but I'm sure the security tapes might clear things up a bit.'

The two officers stared at the videotapes for two hours.

'There you have it!' Lieutenant DeBrandt pointed at a figure on the screen and a girl who matched the description.

'Wait, I know that girl!' Sergeant O' Shaugnessy answered in disbelief. It was the girl he bumped in to a few days ago.


	5. Chapter 5

Bad moon rising: chapter 5

Intro:

Rose' sister Daisy was released from the hospital a few days ago. Rose insisted she stayed with their parents a few days, so she could recover from her injuries. Rose wanted to make sure her younger sister was safe. Now with her sister in safety, Rose could pick her daily routine.

Rose was just about to go to her work as a waitress (she used to work as a secretary in a law firm, but her ex-husband demanded she quit her job to take care for the baby), when Nina walked in to the room.

'Mom?'

-'Yes, dear?'

'What's this?' Nina gave her something brownish, which was made of leather.

-'Well, it seems to be a wallet, but it isn't mine. Let's see who it belongs to, shall we?'

When she opened the wallet, a police emblem showed.

'Oh, well it seems to be from a police officer, but I didn't meet any. Wait… Yes, I bumped into a police officer a few days ago. This must be his wallet! I'll stop at the police station after work.  
Now Nina, you know the rules.'

-'I know, but can we at least order some pizza?'

'I guess. But if the pizza delivery guy comes, let Solomon open the door, just as a precaution. Now I have to go or I'll be late. Here's 20 dollars for the pizza. And Nina?'

-'Yes?'

'No more drawing on Solomon's face when he's sleeping!'

-'Oh, you saw that?'

'Goodbye Nina.' She kissed her daughter on the cheek.

'Bye mom.'

Rose worked as a part-time waitress in a restaurant. It was a big difference from her former job as a secretary, but after Nina was born her former husband demanded she stayed home with the baby. Now Rose happily accepted any job she could find. Maybe, when they're life became a bit more normal again, she could pick up her former job.

Rose' shift ended at 7 p.m. and she felt exhausted. There'd been a few unhappy customers who needed to be dealt with, some birthday parties and the occasional drunk guy trying to make his move. She said her goodbyes to her colleagues, and remembered she still had to drop off that wallet from the police officer at the precinct.

Rose arrived at the precinct, when she remembered she didn't know the officer's name.

She decided to walk towards the counter and ask who's wallet it was.

'Excuse me, I found this wallet and I believe it's from one of the officer's working here.'

-'I'll see if I can find a match for the ID number in our database. Ah yes, it belongs to officer O' Shaugnessy. You can find his desk on the third floor. Just walk through this corridor and take the elevator.'

'Thank you.'

While standing in the elevator Rose was wondering whether officer O'Shaughnessy would recognize her.

It took her some time to find his desk, but when she finally found him she was confused.

A man was sitting at the desk of officer O'Shaughnessy, but he was a bit different than she remembered.

'Officer O'Shaughnessy?'

The man sitting across the desk nearly fell from his chair when Rose spoke.

-'I'm sorry, I was taking a quick nap. Who did you say you came for? 'The man asked while picking up his chair and straightening his uniform.

'Officer O'Shaughnessy.'

-'You've just missed him. He left about five minutes ago, but maybe I can help you?'

'Well, a few days ago officer O'Shaughnessy and myself bumped into each other and he lost his wallet in the process. So, I thought I could return his wallet.'

-'I'll tell him you stopped by, Miss …?'

'Rose, Rose Thomas.'

-'It's nice to meet you, Miss Thomas. I'm O'Shaugnessy's partner DeBrandt.'

'I should be going, my daughter Nina is home alone. It was nice meeting you officer DeBrandt.'

-'Goodbye Miss Thomas.'

When Kevin O'Shaughnessy's shift ended, he made a quick stop at the precinct. He was immediately greeted by his partner DeBrandt.

'Any new messages, Jim?'

-'Nothing special, but this girl stopped by to return your wallet. She looked familiar, but I couldn't really say where I knew here from.'

'What was her name?'

-'Thomas, Rose Thomas.'

'Doesn't ring a bell. 'What did she look like?'

After lieutenant DeBrandt had described the woman, O' Shaugnessy started looking through some files on his computer.

'What are you doing, sergeant?'

-'That woman, she sounds like the same woman who we saw on the security tapes in the hospital a few days ago. Ah here it is.' O'Shaughnessy showed a photo taken from a surveillance camera to DeBrandt.

'Is this the woman you saw?'

-'Yes, that's her! Now that I think about it, she seemed nervous and she mentioned something about her daughter. And this guy. Was he here too?' O'Shaughnessy pointed at someone standing next to Rose on the photo.

'No, I think I would've remembered him.'

Kevin nodded.

'I'm telling you Jim, we have a lot of puzzle pieces. But I can't seem to figure out how they're connected. I think Miss Thomas is the key to this puzzle. We should go talk to her tomorrow.'


End file.
